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Order of Holists
The Order of Holists (Tiaghama: Tsochar ta'Sheabharam), officially known as the Esoteric Order of the Seekers of Truth is a scholarly order established by Culduin the Philosopher in Tiagho, which unified the majority of the scholarly establishment there into a unified framework. The Order follows the principles of Ta Sheabhat (Translation: All in Everything) an iralliamite scholarly philosophy influenced by western ideas. Ta Sheabhat The Philosophy of Ta Sheabhat, which is iralliamite at its core, was developed by Culduin "the Philosopher" under the influence of the chaiuran/machaianist concept of interconnectedness, and the precepts of the council of Bysria. The essential proposition of the philosophy is the assertion that that all things in the universe are connected within a complex harmony of divine order (the iralliamite concept of oporistrin) proceeding from the transcendant divine origin (the one) and first principle, with this order being a sublime harmony behind the chaotic appearance of complexity which man cannot wholly perceive in his smallness. followers of Ta Sheabhat believe that any given bit of knowledge cannot be separated from the totality of which it is apart, and that understanding of the universe within what man is capable of percieving can only be achieved through an appreciation of the whole (much as a musical symphony cannot be understood by listening to but one instrument within the whole). This philosophy thus differs from the Helsian philosophy of Doru o Ierai in that it a) rejects the atomised rationalistic categorical approach to knowledge of the universe or that perfect knowledge of the divine order of the universe can ever be obtained by mortal means in favour of mystical holism and skepticism of human knowledge (seeing pretensions of certitude as hubristic) and b) in that it rejects that certain knowledge of the divinity can be achieved apart from divine revelation, asserting that the font of divine order is transcendent and thus entirely unknowable by feeble human effort, and being in any case beyond human comprehensive faculties. History The Order of Holists was established through the gradual organic association and collaboration of the various scholarly schools and houses of learning in Tiagho and even some in the surrounding region that remained as a legacy of the Dulama and Vithanama scholastic tradition under the rapidly spreading (amongst the scholarly community at least) philosophy of Ta Sheabhat. This unification served the holistic principles of the order by bringing the various schools together for the exchange and development of knowledge. Eventually in the year 1850 of the Amure Reckoning a formal governing structure was established with the great philosopher Culduin being proclaimed as Grandmaster of the Order of Holists, and Lord Holist by a council of the heads of the various academic schools. Major Disciplines The Order of Holists contains many disciplines and sub-disciplines, the major disciplines consist of the following, albeit numerous minor disciplines (usually specialised and/or dealing with aspects of multiple schools in a specific sphere) and sects of these schools exist within the order. This includes most notably the School of Bureacrats, which is concerned with the art of governance and public order (combining aspects of the schools of logicians, anthropologists and engineers) - 1. School of Holists: Concerned with the study of holism and the connections between all things. Proto-school of the entire order. 2. School of Cetics: Concerned with the study of the functions and principles relating to consciousness, includes sub-disciplines such as the art of reading emotions and thoughts in body-language. 3. School of Theologians: Concerned with the study of sacred scripture and orthodox theology and doctrine, in addition to sacred rites and mysticism. 4. School of Eschatologists: Concerned with the study of spirits, and the malevolent spiritual powers, and discerning the purpose of human beings should there be one. 5. School of Scryers: Concerned with the discernment and study of future possibilities and events 6. School of Remembrancers: Concerned with the study of memory 7. School of Historians: Concerned with the study of history 8. School of Chronologists: Concerned with the study of time 9. School of Mathematicians: Concerned with the study of pure mathematics 10. School of Engineeers: Concerned with the study of physics and engineering, the making of machines and construction of buildings and the realisation of technological advancements. 11. School of Alchemists: Concerned with the study of the human body and medicine, ultimate alchemical goal being immortality and the defeat of death 12. School of Anthropologists: Concerned with the study of humanity and social, cultural and political functions. 13. School of Ecologists: Concerned with the study of life and its associated processes and objects 14. School of Linguists: Concerned with the study of language and syntax 15. School of Aesthetists: Concerned with the study of beauty, music and art and its philosophical implications 16. School of Astrologists: Concerned with the study of celestial bodies 17. School of Logicians: Concerned with the study of logic and order 18. School of Tacticians: Concerned with the study of tactics and strategy 19. School of Philosophers: Concerned with the study of philosophy and metaphysics 20. School of Geomancers: Concerned with the study of the geology and physical substances Organisation Each school (of which there are at least a hundred including the minor disciplines) is headed by a "Lord" (ex: Lord Astrologist and so forth) who is elected by that schools recognized masters and is charged with governing that schools affairs (material and scholarly) and sits on the High Council of the Order which is tasked with furthering the study of knowledge and advising the Grand-Master who heads the council and acts as chief autocratic manager, setting the collective orders rules, boundaries and dictates. Below this council in academic terms exist masters, who are recognized (as having mastered their disciplines) and are given the right to sit as a member of the Council of Masters, which governs the recognition of new masters and the judging of postulants and novices in addition to its role as an advisory council to the High Council of the Order and the Grandmaster. Below them are Adepts (those who have been recognised as proficient in their discipline, with adepts being titled merely after the discipline philosopher, logician and so forth) who have passed the novitiate of a scholarly school within the order (novices being new inductees to the order) in which they have studied the ways of the discipline and been inducted into holist theory. The lowest academic level below novices consist of postulants, who are those studying in anticipation for being tested for worthiness to join the initiate or are otherwise engaged in academic learning at a foundational level. The Order is not a mass institution and so only the most academically skilled postulants are ever considered meritorious enough to be inducted into the novitiate of the Order within one of its many schools. Category:Organization